The Power of Being in the Room - Your 2026 Competitive Edge

This week I'm coming to you from the skies on my was home from Adelaide. I've had a fully booked week here delivering keynotes at leadership forums, delivering workshops and another keynote at an association conference. I'm truly in my element with these types of weeks, on stage, sharing insights, changing rooms, inspiring leaders to think differently and shift some mindsets. The feedback has been incredible, I'm so lucky to call this my job.

Some of the biggest insights this week so far have been:

When leaders talk about strategy, they often focus on markets, products, and numbers. But here’s what I remind executives time and again: culture eats strategy for breakfast, but strategy set the table (read my thought about this here.)

Something magical happens when people come together in the same room.Not a Zoom room. Not a Teams call. A real room. Filled with energy, ideas, and possibility.

In a world obsessed with efficiency and automation, we often forget the irreplaceable power of presence. Whether it’s a leadership retreat, a strategy day, or an all-staff conference, the simple act of bringing people together can shift everything.

You can have the sharpest plans and the boldest goals, but if your people aren't aligned, if they're disengaged, or burned out, none of it sticks. And in today’s workplace, hybrid, multigenerational, and AI-enabled. connection isn’t just a side note. It’s the competitive edge.

The Room Is the Reset

When leaders and teams step away from their inboxes and into shared space, walls come down.

Hierarchy softens.

Conversation deepens.

Alignment happens, not because of a new framework or policy, but because people see each other again.

In my work with executive and senior teams, I’ve seen the transformation first-hand. The conversations that matter most, about vision, trust, and what’s next don’t happen in the margins of meetings. They happen when we create time and space for them.

Alignment Starts with Connection

True alignment isn’t about agreeing on everything. It’s about being anchored to the same purpose.

When people are in the room:

• They reconnect to the why.

• They remember the humans behind the job titles.

• They build the trust needed to navigate ambiguity together.

  
  

It’s these moments of collective clarity that turn good strategies into great outcomes. They turn disengagement into a spark of motivation of possibility. 

As leaders, it’s your job to design these moments. Intentionally.

Whether you’re leading a team of five or five hundred, make space to gather, reflect, and realign.

Because when the room lights up, so does the organisation.

Here’s to the power of being in the room and what happens when courageous leaders create it.

If you're planning to bring your team together, I'd love to speak you about how we can create that spark, that moment of connection.

If you would like to book in a time to speak with Ally: CLICK HERE.

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Ally Nitschke is a best-selling Author, an award-winning Thought Leader and Speaker. She has been working with leaders and as a Leader for over 20 years.

She is on a mission to change the way we communicate at work, to lean into those uncomfortable conversations and lead with courage.

Ally is a Keynote Speaker at conferences, delivers Transformational Programs & highly engaging workshops as well as provides Executive Coaching.